Dopapod is getting more vocal

June 21, 2012 at 12:00a.m.

It’s all about having fun for New York City’s Dopapod, which for the past few years has been spreading its instrumental jam-band stylings around the East Coast.

However, the group was starting to feel as though its sound, sans vocals, was getting tired. Luckily, for an instrumental band that needed a new challenge, the answer was obvious.

“There are tunes on the next album that have vocals in it, which is a giant change for us,” said guitarist Rob Compa, calling from the Big Apple. “At first, it was something that stressed us out a bit. We didn’t know if anyone would like it, but you have to push yourself and change your music, and your music has to evolve or you get bored. You drive yourself crazy; it’s like cabin fever.”

Having been talked about for years, the decision to write songs featuring Compa and keyboardist Eli Winderman in front of the microphone came easy. While still somewhat a new ingredient to Dopadod, Compa said vocals are getting stronger with each live performance.

Among the new tunes that feature singing are the band favorite “Bubble Brain” and the dark, Primus-inpsired “Brain Dead.” Compa said the band’s sound combines a heavier edge of, say, Umphrey’s McGee with the jazz-funk motif of Medeski Martin & Wood.

“We’re big fans of the jazz-funk kind of thing, but our latest record has more of like a prog-rock direction,” Compa said. “I suppose we just wanted to challenge ourselves more, so the most-recent album has a lot more sophisticated arrangements, and it’s a lot more complex.”

Music fans can expect to hear a wide swath of tunes when the group makes its Youngstown debut Saturday at the Lemon Grove. When the group’s current set is discussed with the new tunes added into the mix, Compa said the band is evolving.

“Some friends of ours would come to shows and say, ‘You know, your new stuff is harder to dance to,’” Compa said. “We were like, ‘Yeah, we don’t care.’ From a musician’s point of view, we just wanted to keep ourselves on our toes a little more. We weren’t afraid to do that. It was more fun for us. When we boil it down at the end of the day, we just want to have fun.”